Noah faced a small storm of criticism over a tweet that left some South Africans uneasy on Women's Day. He tweeted:
Happy Women's Day ladies. Hope you all have a great day. Even you Caster.
— Trevor Noah (@Trevornoah) August 9, 2013
He was referring to South African runner Caster Semenya, who shot to fame after winning the women's 800m world championships in 2009 but was then forced to undergo gender tests after questions were raised over her gender.
The controversy that followed shook South Africans, with many taken aback at the treatment of Semenya as public discourse over her gender reached fever pitch. Claims that she was a hermaphrodite circulated. In a later interview with South African magazine YOU Semenya stated, "God made me the way I am and I accept myself."
Noah is the top followed South African on Twitter, according to a recent survey, and wields enormous influence through his high public profile. The tweet was retweeted over a thousand times by Friday evening, with many of Noah's fans laughing at the joke.
Some, however, were not that impressed.
One fan said:
@Trevornoah funny, but insensitive. Not cool.
— Brian Kudakwashe (@briankuda) August 9, 2013
Noah took the criticism well, saying:
@briankuda that's a very honest response. I appreciate that. I never mean to hurt though, I just joke about everything.
— Trevor Noah (@Trevornoah) August 9, 2013
But others were more pointed in their criticism of the comedian.
'Cause she isn't *really* a woman. Gedit? Ha! Idiot RT @Trevornoah: Happy Women's Day ladies. Hope you all have a great day. Even you Caster
— T.O. Molefe (@TOMolefe) August 9, 2013
Writer Tom Eaton agreed:
I see Trevor Noah has now moved to Phase 2 of Being A Public Misogynist : no apology, and sarcasm towards his critics.
— Tom Eaton (@TomEatonSA) August 9, 2013
In a subsequent tweet seemingly in response to the negative reaction Noah tweeted:
Imagine if there was a way to unfollow people you didn't like on Twitter. I wish they had some sort of button to click.
— Trevor Noah (@Trevornoah) August 9, 2013
Noah has previously crossed the line in this area. Shortly after last year's 16 days of activism for No Violence Against Women and Children he made another joke at the expense of women that drew some criticism:
Originally when men proposed they went down on one knee so if the woman said no they were in the perfect uppercut position.
— Trevor Noah (@Trevornoah) December 20, 2012
Noah is the darling of the local comedy scene in many ways. His shows sell out and he spent a successful spell in the US where he made commended appearances on popular shows like the David Letterman show and Jay Leno's Tonight Show. His material draws on the idiosyncrasies of race, culture, politics and current affairs in South Africa.
Some felt the criticism of Noah's tweet was unwarranted:
We have been laughing at Trevor's joke on Malema & Caster for a while now. We refuse to do so on Women's Day. #Bigotry
— nhlanhla (@NgwenyaNhla) August 9, 2013
But popular political analyst and puppet, Chester Missing, dismissed that idea, saying:
@Zwandid @Eusebius Hey @NgwenyaNhla, dont be an ignoramus. Irrespective of Cde @Trevornoah, the politics of laughter are not simple.
— Chester Missing (@chestermissing) August 9, 2013
Local writer and feminist Rebecca Davis also weighed in:
Entirely leaving other aspects aside, I'm not convinced @Trevornoah's tweet meets the minimum norms and standards for definition as "joke"
— Rebecca Davis (@becsplanb) August 9, 2013
His fans however remained convinced that it was an innocent mistake:
@I_am_Godfrey @Trevornoah There was no malice though, slight overstep on a sensitive subject, he's human after all.
— Brian Kudakwashe (@briankuda) August 9, 2013
